


smoke and mirrors.

by orphan_account



Category: Detective Comics (Comics)
Genre: 1920s AU, Harvey and Ed make out for like, Iceberg Lounge, Implied Harley/Ivy, Implied Selina/Bruce, M/M, two seconds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-24
Updated: 2017-04-24
Packaged: 2018-10-23 16:17:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10722819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: “Now, riddle me this, who the hell comes to a bar and orders wine?”





	smoke and mirrors.

**Author's Note:**

> i didnt proofread this because im a little bit lazy.

Night time was always the busiest, and nowhere in Gotham city was busier than the Iceberg Lounge. At all hours, the place was buzzing with gangers, swingers, dancers, drinkers, and those simply with a little too much cash burning in their pocket. Anybody who was anybody got their drinks there; even the mysterious detective Batman himself occasionally took up residence along the bar. Typically, it was to get dirt on the most frequent visitors to Mr. Cobblepot’s pride and joy, but even he was willing to slip under the law for a nice glass of whiskey. 

There was one rule in the Iceberg Lounge that kept people like Batman safe while in attendance; no fighting allowed. It didn’t matter who you were or what business you had with anyone else there: while you were under Cobblepots roof, you played by his rules, and if you didn’t well -- 

No one ever found out. 

But people sure did try, pushing the bounds of what they’d be able to get away with under the monocled eye of Mr. Cobblepot, but no one tried harder than Edward Nashton. And Oswald was getting tired of it. 

When he had heard that Nashton had returned to the bar again (for the fifth night in a row) Oswald made a point that he wouldn’t take any pushing of the envelope tonight. There was to be no taunting of Crane, no harassing of Batman, no mocking of Kyle, no talking to Isley - nothing that would stir up a lick of trouble in his lounge. 

“And I assure you that there will be no such thing,” Edward promised. His hat removed from his head and held to his chest. Fiery red hair carefully smoothed down and undisturbed beneath the rounded green cap. 

Oswald narrowed his eyes, clearly distrusting of the theatrics. “Yer on yer last leg, Nashton. Don’t prove yer’self wrong,” Oswald spoke around a cigar between his teeth, smoke puffing out with every word. 

Edward wrinkled his nose, both at the scent of the smoke hitting him in the face and the use of the incorrect name, but he didn’t bother to correct it. There was no point in it. 

Oswald waddled off towards the back room, and unless something else were to happen, Edward was sure that’d be the last time he saw Oswald all night. He adjusted his hat back onto his head, and was turning to call over the bartender when she bounded up to him instead. 

“What can I get’cha, Eddie?” Harley asked him with a bubbly and bright smile. She had only started working at the Iceberg Lounge recently. Following her split from the Joker, she was looking for a place to stay, which she found in fellow Rogue, Poison Ivy. But Harley didn’t want to just ride on the girls coattails like she had with the Joker, and so, she took up work. Oswald paid well and provided decent job security. 

And besides, Edward was certain there was more going on between Ivy and Harley than the two were letting on, and he was sure Oswald knew that too; both of them were willing to turn a blind eye, and besides, Edward wasn’t in any position to judge. 

“Just a rye,” He told Harley with a nod and a slight smile on his lips. He could never be as eager as her. At least, not with the matter of booze. 

She scooped up some ice and tossed it into a glass, before topping it off with a bottle of rye, placing it before him. “Annnnd, there ya go!” Harley beamed. Ed raised the glass in a sign of cheers before her, and took a sip. 

And it was at that moment when the familiar face of Mr. Harvey Dent slid into the seat to Mr. Edward Nashton. 

To anyone from the outside looking in, like Ms. Harleen Quinzel, the two barely knew each other aside from the fact that one of them was a criminal and one of them was the District Attorney. In fact, Harvey had even prosecuted Ed a couple of times and got him a few good stays in Arkham Asylum over the years. But perhaps that was just the perfect cover the two needed, after all, what man in his right mind would arrest his boyfriend like that? 

Then again, some may argue that any man with a boyfriend wasn’t in his right mind in the first place. 

“What’ll it be, Mr. Dent?” Harley’s tone dropped a little bit, but she was still friendly. She was also more than willing to follow the rules laid out by Cobblepot, and that meant serving anyone and everyone who happened to walk in. Mentally, she reminded herself that he wasn’t there to arrest them. 

“Wine, please. Red.” Harvey answered, pursing his lips towards her. She gave a quick nod and poured out the glass. Wordlessly placing it before him, she set off down towards the other end of the bar to chat with Selina Kyle, who was not so discreetly holding the Batman’s hand between their seats. 

“Now, riddle me this, who the hell comes to a bar and orders wine?” 

“It’s not a very good riddle if I already know the answer, Nashton.” Harvey responded - the emphasis on the last name was to particularly incite annoyance in Edward; and it worked. 

“Nygma--” Edward corrected bitterly, taking a sip from his own glass as he watched Harvey slowly sip from his glass of wine. Harvey was comfortable in the Iceberg Lounge, as he wasn’t uncommon to the place either. Sure, he kept up his work at the GCPD, sending off criminals to jail on behalf of the city; but that wasn’t all he did. He had his hand in his own criminal activity, mostly under Don Maroni. But he was careful, he knew Maroni stood a good chance of biting him in the ass one of these days. 

“How’ve you been?” Harvey asked, after a moment of silence. He barely looked towards Ed as he spoke, and Ed didn’t blame him. Briefly attempting to provide the same service, he failed, and found himself leaning against the bar with his head turned towards the other man. 

“Alright, I suppose. Business as usual.” Edward drawled lazily. “And yourself?” 

Harvey didn’t answer the question, and instead responded with - “Are you busy tonight?” 

At that, Edward straightened up, a smirk immediately forming up on his face. He didn’t need to be told twice about what that meant. “Hmmm, you know, I might’ve had plans with Dr. Crane tonight but I suppose I can give him a raincheck.” His tongue darted out to lick his lips, and he knew Harvey took notice with the way he shifted in his seat. Ed loved these games they played. 

“Good,” Harvey said simply, followed up by another long sip from his wine - leaving it empty. “Your place,” It was closer. “One hour.” He instructed, standing up from the seat, he left a five dollar bill on the counter for Harley, before he turned, heading deeper into the bar without even waiting for an answer from Ed; he had business with Maroni first. 

“One hour,” Ed repeated, glancing over his shoulder as he watched the District Attorney retreat from the counter. At his leaving, Harley bounced back over, taking the bill, she tucked it into the front of her dress. 

“He give you any trouble, Eddie?” She asked him curiously. 

“Oh, no trouble at all, my dear.” He held up his glass towards her. “Top me off, will you?” 

\---

A little over an hour later, Ed was making his way into his own apartment. Harvey had beaten him there, using the key that had been provided by Ed a few weeks prior. He sat on the couch, the radio turned on and playing just loud enough that any noise that the two would end up making shouldn’t be audible to the neighbors. He looked comfortable, his blazer removed and resting over the back of the couch, the sleeves of his button up rolled up to the elbow, his hat resting on the table where his feet were propped up (shoes removed, to Ed’s pleasure) and a cigarette hanging loosely from his lips. He didn’t wear a tie, and Ed briefly wondered where he had left it; he could’ve sworn Harvey had one on earlier. 

“You’re late,” Harvey remarked as Ed entered, leaning forward to put out his cigarette in the ashtray. Ed, still near the door, was taking off his shoes, jacket, and hat and putting them away appropriately before he moved to join Harvey on the couch. An arm instantly wrapped around his waist and pulled him in close as lips met lips. It was only in the privacy of closed doors that the two could indulge in each others touch, and they made sure to indulge whenever they could. Ed melted against Harvey, thin arms wrapping around broad shoulders as he pulled him in close. Harvey was handsy, gripping at the sides of Ed’s shirt as he pulled it up - untucking it so he could slide his hands up and down the other man's hips. 

Edward shivered - Harvey’s hands were always freezing. 

It was a rough tug that detached their lips for a moment, pulling Ed entirely onto Harvey’s lap, and he groaned as he pushed himself entirely against him. Ed bit down hard on Harvey’s lip, and he growled from the back of his throat; the sound sending a shiver down Ed’s spine. Suddenly, Harvey’s hands didn’t feel so cold as a heat was forming heavily between them. 

“Ed--” Harvey grunted after a short while, releasing his lips and moving his hands off of him. Edward let out a huff, straightening himself out in frustration. 

“What is it, Harvey? What could possibly be more important then---” 

“‘Roni.” Came Harvey’s response, again, grunted out. 

That wasn’t the answer Ed had been expecting to hear. Disheveled and still annoyed, he shifted off of Harvey’s lap to sit next to him instead. “What about him?” The name itself was very much a mood killer, Ed would have to admit. He set about attempting to pull the wrinkles out of his shirt; but it didn’t work. 

“He suspects me,” Why Harvey didn’t bring this up first, or wait until _after_ was a mystery to Ed, and frankly he currently found their whole situation to be incredibly ridiculous - and he had been on the verge of vocalizing those exact theories when Harvey continued on. “He knows we’ve been talkin’. Doesn’t know about what - God, I hope he doesn’t know what we’ve been up to - but it’s buggin’ him. Been insisting I know nothin’ ‘bout you aside from your case files but… He doesn’t believe me.” Harvey explained running a hand through his hair. He needed another cigarette, and fished one, along with a pack of matches, from his pocket. He popped the cigarette in his mouth and lit it with a match. Taking a moment to breathe in the smoke and let it out. Edward didn’t comment on him smoking in the house. “Can’t say I blame’im. We haven’t been exactly careful lately.” 

Harvey was right, and Ed knew it. But that didn’t mean he was going to admit it. They hadn’t been careful, and well… If anyone found out what they were up to, they’d be ruined. 

Carefully, Harvey reached for Ed’s hand, taking it up lightly, he laced his fingers with Ed’s. Letting out a gentle sigh. “I’m not saying that we’ve got to stop. I don’t wanna do that either, I’m just sayin’ we gotta… Watch what we’re doing. Be careful.” He explained, and this time, Edward decided not to argue. 

He did nearly the opposite, squeezing Harvey’s hand as he leaned in to rest his head against the other man’s chest. Harvey’s other hand moving to wrap around Ed and rub his back in slow circles. He tilted his head down, pressing his nose into the smooth red hair. 

 

The two fell silent, comfortably leaning against each other and just embracing the company of the other, Ed’s hands wrapping around Harvey’s middle, clasped around his back while he snuggled against his chest, humming quietly to random and made-up tunes. Meanwhile, Harvey kept his nose buried against Ed’s hair, finding a comfort in the soft scent of soap (pine, he’d guess. But the scent was so soft it was hard to tell for certain.) while his one hand made slow circles along the small of Ed’s back, the other rested on his thigh in a gentle squeeze. 

Harvey was the first to break the silence. 

“We should head to bed,” He commented, slightly muffled by the hair against his lips. He made no effort to move from it. 

“Not tired,” Ed complained in response, and Harvey let out a sigh. 

“It’d be comfier,” He argued, and with a rather dramatic sigh, Edward parted from Harvey and stood up. He stretched out, his arms above his head and his back arching a little bit. “I suppose,” He finally resigned. “Would you like something to drink?” He asked, rubbing his eyes. Harvey bit back a remark about how he “wasn’t tired.” 

“Water’ll do.” He responded, and pulled himself up to stand as he shuffled off to Ed’s room. He changed there, having kept some spare clothes around Ed’s place for this exact reason. 

He laid back on the bed, closing his eyes and curling up under the blankets when Ed came into the room. He heard the sound of two glasses of water being placed down, followed by Edward shuffling around the room as he changed out of his suit and into pajamas himself. Harvey stayed still, his face half-smushed into the pillow until he felt the shifting of the mattress and Ed laying down next to him. The two shifted into their usual position, Harvey spooning Ed from behind, holding him close. He shifted a little bit, pressing a couple of warm kisses to the back of Ed’s neck, which earned a contented sigh and little wiggle of his hips, but not much came from the action other than Harvey closing his eyes and relaxing into a certain peace with Edward. 

“Eddie?” Harvey mumbled, moving his head to properly lay on the pillow, just above Ed’s. Suddenly, he was feeling rather tired - and he hadn’t even touched his glass of water. 

“Mm, yes, Harvey?” Edward responded, sounding about just as tired. 

“I love you.”  
That wasn’t what Ed had been expecting, and had he not tensed up, he would’ve just pretended he fell asleep without hearing it. But it was too late, Harvey was already concerned by the way that his grip tightened just the slightest bit around Ed’s waist. 

“Harvey…” Ed began, but he really didn’t know where he was going with that. He didn’t… He couldn’t love him. He was a criminal, and Harvey was the DA. And even if they looked past all of that; there was no way they could possibly go public with their relationship. And yet, there was an over-sentimental bastard clinging to his back, and Edward was at a loss of what to do. 

Unless, he did love him? Edward hadn’t considered that before. 

He had never loved anyone, and he didn’t know why he would. People had never been particularly kind to him, and he hadn’t been particularly kind to them either. Feelings had never suited him well; attachments to people had previously only led to him getting hurt, and before Harvey, well… 

Well, Edward hadn’t even thought about entering such a relationship. 

And now here he was, contentedly lying in the arms of another man. And it wasn’t the first time either, and he didn’t think it’d be the last. He didn’t want it to be the last. Is that what love was? His brows furrowed, and he bit his tongue. It was like a riddle he couldn’t solve, and that was more frustrating than anything. 

“Ed?” 

Was that love? The thump he felt in his chest at the sound of Harvey grumbling his name? Or was it the fact that he found himself less and less willing to bother him to the point of leaving him alone; the fact that there was times where he was desperate to stay with him. Was it love that Edward found himself actually wondering how Harvey was doing even when he wasn’t there? Was it love how even when they weren’t touching, even just speaking to him caused a strange tingling sensation to form in the pit of his stomach, and sometimes it got to the point where he couldn’t ignore it. Or perhaps it was love that he could just listen to Harvey drone on and on about the most mundane things, and Ed would find himself hanging off of every single word. 

Yes, perhaps that was love. 

And yet, he found himself with a certain hesitance to say it back. Love. It wasn’t something that Ed was eager to just toss around senselessly, but… Harvey had said it first. And it wasn’t like Ed could ignore it now. The air between them grew heavy, and he felt Harvey beginning to slip away from him. 

“Harvey,” Ed spoke firmly. Nearly commanding him. His movement stilled - but he didn’t move closer, not until Ed shifted his head to turn back towards him with an arched brow. Harvey still paused, before shifting to lean back against him. 

“Better,” Edward responded, a soft smirk on his lips, but it melted away as he let out a sigh. He couldn’t ignore it, Harvey was clearly nervous. Edward swore he could feel the other man’s heart beating in his chest. “I do suppose I love you too,” He wasn’t a sentimental man; it sounded like a burden when he said it. 

But it was enough for Harvey, who understood Ed enough to know what that meant. Ed did love him. He leaned up and over, cupping Ed’s face gently to bring their lips together in a soft kiss. 

Edward was the one who ended this kiss, shifting to lay back down, and Harvey followed afterwards. “That was nice, but I am getting tired, Harvey dear,” Ed explained, slightly muffled as he leaned into the pillow. 

Harvey bit back another sly remark in favor of pressing another kiss to the top of soft orange hair. 

By this time tomorrow, Harvey would be split down the middle; his skin eaten away and burnt nearly down to the bone. He’d lose his mind. He’d lose his job. He’d lose his best friend. 

But for one final night, he was happy.


End file.
